Georg. 2.362Ac dum prīma novīs adolēscit frondibus aetās,
parcendum tenerīs, et dum sē laetus ad aurās
palmes agit laxīs per pūrum inmissus habēnīs,
365ipsa aciē nōndum falcis temptanda, sed uncīs
carpendae manibus frondēs interque legendae.And while their first youth grows with new leaves, the tender things must be spared; and while the shoot pushes gladly into the air, let loose with slack reins through the clear sky, it must not yet be tried with the edge of the pruning-hook itself, but the leaves must be plucked with bent fingers and thinned here and there. Georg. 2.367Inde ubi iam validīs amplexae stirpibus ulmōs
exierint, tum stringe comās, tum bracchia tondē—
ante refōrmīdant ferrum—tum dēnique dūra
370exercē imperia et rāmōs conpesce fluentīs.Then, when they have embraced the elms with sturdy stems and shot up, then strip their foliage, then clip their arms — before this they dread the steel — then at last exercise hard rule and check the straggling branches.
Lectitō › Vergil › Georgics › Georgics 2.362–370
Vergil · Georgics
Georgics 2.362–370
Pruning the young vine
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Latin vocabulary for this passage (56 words)
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| dum, conj. | while, as; as long as; until |
| prīmus, -a, -um | first, foremost |
| novus, -a, -um | new; novissimus, last |
| adolēscō, -ere, adolēvī, adultus | grow up |
| frōns, frondis f. | leafy branch, foliage |
| aetās, -tātis, f. | age |
| parcō, -ere, pepercī, parsūrus | spare, show mercy to (+ dat.) |
| tener, -era, -erum | young, tender |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| laetus, -a, -um | glad, joyful |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| aura, -ae, f. | air, breeze |
| palmes, -itis m. | young branch or shoot of a vine |
| agō, agere, ēgī, āctus | drive; do; pass, lead; grātiās agere, see grātia |
| laxus, -a, -um | loose, slack |
| per, prep, with ace. | through, by means of |
| pūrus, -a, -um | clean, pure; (of land) clear, unbuilt |
| immittō, -mittere, -mīsī, -missus | send or let in |
| habēna, -ae f. | rein |
| ipse, ipsa, ipsum, intensive pron. | self, himself, herself, itself, themselves; often to be rendered by very |
| aciēs, -ēī, f. | line of battle |
| nōndum, adv. | not yet |
| falx, falcis, f. | sickle; curved sword, falchion |
| temptō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | try, attempt |
| sed, conj. | but |
| uncus, -a, -um | hooked |
| carpō, -ere, -sī, -tus | pluck |
| manus, -ūs, f. | hand |
| inter, prep, with acc. | among, between |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| legō, legere, lēgī, lēctus | choose, pick out; read |
| inde (adv.) | from there; then |
| ubi, adv. | where; conj., when |
| iam, adv. | now, already |
| validus, -a, -um | strong |
| amplector, -plectī, -plexus sum | embrace, hug; welcome, adopt |
| stirps, stirpis f. | stock, root; family, race |
| ulmus, -ī f. | elm |
| exeō, -īre, -iī, -itus | go out |
| tum, adv. | then, at that time |
| stringō, stringere, strinxī, strictus | draw, unsheathe |
| coma, -ae f. | hair, a head of hair; foliage |
| bracchium, -ī, n. | arm |
| tondeō, -ēre, totondī, tōnsum | shear, clip |
| ante, prep, with acc. and adv. | before |
| refōrmīdō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | dread, shrink from |
| ferrum, -ī n. | iron; iron point, sword |
| dēnique, adv. | lastly, finally |
| dūrus, -a, -um | hard; harsh; difficult |
| exerceō, -ercēre, -ercuī, -ercitus | exercise |
| imperium, -ī, n. | command; sway, rule |
| rāmus, -ī, m. | branch, bough |
| compescō (conp-), -ere, -pescuī | hold in check, restrain; quench (thirst) |
| fluō, -ere, flūxī | flow |
Vergil, Georgics. Latin text: J. B. Greenough, The Bucolics, Aeneid, and Georgics of Virgil (Boston, 1881), public domain; digital text from the Perseus Digital Library, CC BY-SA. Word analysis: drafted by our own tagger (trained on the hand-checked texts on this site), with every doubtful word checked by hand. English translation and section titles: written for this app, each checked against the Latin by a second reader.